The document available for download below is a draft of the historical details of the USS Calvert and crew from during the 1960s.

The 42-page document (a .pdf file) may be viewed or downloaded here:

and includes details on the following events and activities:

• November 1960 to July 1961 Far East Cruise
• 1962 WestPac Cruise
• 1963 West Coast Training Exercises
• 1964 WestPac Cruise
• 1965 WestPac Cruise
• Calvert’s Final WestPac Cruise, Vietnam Service – August 1965 to February 1966
• Final days and decommissioning

Please leave comments below or email me directly if you have any corrections, questions, or details you would like to share.

This document represents a “working draft” and as such there may be formatting issues, grammatical errors, as well as historical inaccuracies, incomplete or conflicting details.

Document version history as follows:

• v2020.06.02 – Addition of text from two letters (to friends and families; commendation) from early 1966. Both original documents are available on this website.
• v2020.05.29 – Rough draft, first published.

The 39-page document available for download (below) is a draft of the historical details of the USS Calvert and crew for the period 1955 to 1959. It may be viewed or downloaded here:

USS Calvert Historical Research Notes for the period January 1, 1995 to December 31, 1959.

This document includes details on the following events and activities:

• 1955 Far East Cruise – March 1955 to September 1955
• 1956 Far East Cruise – August 1956 to April 1957
  • Including details on Operation Tradewinds, Hawaii, and filming of sequences for the movie South Pacific
• 1958 Far East Cruse – June 1958 to December 1958
• A series of combined Navy-Marine beach landings and helicopter landing exercises during 1959 in Southern California and Hawaii, used to develop and test new techniques for joint Navy and Marine amphibious assaults.

Please leave comments below or email me directly if you have any corrections, questions, or details you would like to share.

This document represents a “working draft” and as such there may be formatting issues, grammatical errors, as well as historical inaccuracies, incomplete or conflicting details.

Document version history as follows:

• v2020.05.22 – Rough draft, first published.
• v2023.10.01 – Several updates, including photographs and maps. Daily history added for November and December, 1959.
• v2025.01.04 – Minor updates.

Provided by the family of James Chernak, RM3/2 – 1964 -1966.

Running 22 minutes, here are some highlights:

Part 1: 1965 Westpac Cruise – February 5th to April 28th Including:

• Yokosuka Japan
• Calvert at Sea
• USS Paul Revere, APA-248 and other ships at sea
• Pearl Harbor
• Rough Seas
• High Wire Personnel Transfer from USS Paul Revere
• Hawaii & Diamondhead from the sea
• At Sea: Top-side church service, Top-side chow, choppy seas
• Welcome home to San Diego!

Part 2: Westpac Cruise ’65 – ’66 – August 23rd, 1965 to February 26, 1966

• Hong Kong (?) from sea
• At sea:
  • At the 16 minute, 5 seconds to 15 seconds: Jorge de la Rossa (left), Skip Steedsman (middle), Jack Hancock (right), as the camera pans to the left and then back right.
  • Gunnery practice, flag & signal deck
• Danang harbor

Photographs:

Also from James’ daughter, Shelia, is this photograph. Possibly taken at the start or end of the ’65 or ’66 WestPac cruise: